I have already shared this video on social media, but felt it is worth writing a short post about as well.

Before I start talking about using a Drone, I will say make sure to check you local laws on drone usage, and also emphasise to err on the side of caution – Personally I always go out of the way to make sure I don’t film anyone else (these were filmed at stupid o clock before anyone was awake) – to be safe the smartphone controller is on a mount on my usual NK strokecoach mount meaning I can quickly stop and take control if I think I need to

The Bebop 2 is actually an “older” drone (there are several more modern ones out there like the DJI Mavik for example) but what the bebop does have going for it is good third party development support which has ended up meaning there are a number of smartphone apps that add a number of additional features that the official app does not – and the app I used for this video (Bebop Pro) is one good example of this as it adds a number of features like VR support and follow/track me.

Drones are excellent at getting unique footage, and there are countless videos now of rowing squads using them – but they are always launched and controlled by someone on a launch/on the bank and being a single sculler I had neither of those options, so I had wondered about using a follow me function to get the outcome I wanted.

The Follow me feature is pretty standard and is usually what I ended up using for the following shots – basically it tells the drone to just follow behind and it is as easy to start as launching the drone, getting it into position and then pressing the button (note you have to be within 25m for it to work) – it doesn’t matter if the drone isn’t directly behind you when you start the drone will eventually take up position behind you

Track me is slightly different in that the standard track me keeps the drone in the same relative position, so if the drone is infront of you when you press track me – it will try an stay there – this is what I used for the other type of shots – it is also possible to pan the shot as well where you can set a speed and the drone slowly pans around keeping you in shot.

Another note – the bebop 2 doesn’t have collision avoidance, so it will quite happily fly into a tree if it gets the chance! So you need to keep an eye on it.

I am very happy with the video and think the Bebop 2 and app is a great option for drone footage – however just to note that the follow me feature does use the battery power very quickly (I suspect due to the fact it is trying to follow the surge and slow of the boat through the stroke) and, as mentioned, it doesn’t have any collision avoidance – but if you take this into account, have a quiet stretch of water which is clear of trees and are able to find one for a good price it is well worth a look

Before I start talking about using a Drone, I will say make sure to check you local laws on drone usage, and also emphasise to err on the side of caution – Personally I always go out of the way to make sure I don’t film anyone else (these were filmed at stupid o clock before anyone was awake) – to be safe the smartphone controller is on a mount on my usual NK strokecoach mount meaning I can quickly stop and take control if I think I need to

The Bebop 2 is actually an “older” drone (there are several more modern ones out there like the DJI Mavik for example) but what the bebop does have going for it is good third party development support which has ended up meaning there are a number of smartphone apps that add a number of additional features that the official app does not – and the app I used for this video (Bebop Pro) is one good example of this as it adds a number of features like VR support and follow/track me.

Drones are excellent at getting unique footage, and there are countless videos now of rowing squads using them – but they are always launched and controlled by someone on a launch/on the bank and being a single sculler I had neither of those options, so I had wondered about using a follow me function to get the outcome I wanted.

The Follow me feature is pretty standard and is usually what I ended up using for the following shots – basically it tells the drone to just follow behind and it is as easy to start as launching the drone, getting it into position and then pressing the button (note you have to be within 25m for it to work) – it doesn’t matter if the drone isn’t directly behind you when you start the drone will eventually take up position behind you

Track me is slightly different in that the standard track me keeps the drone in the same relative position, so if the drone is infront of you when you press track me – it will try an stay there – this is what I used for the other type of shots – it is also possible to pan the shot as well where you can set a speed and the drone slowly pans around keeping you in shot.

Another note – the bebop 2 doesn’t have collision avoidance, so it will quite happily fly into a tree if it gets the chance! So you need to keep an eye on it.

I am very happy with the video and think the Bebop 2 and app is a great option for drone footage – however just to note that the follow me feature does use the battery power very quickly (I suspect due to the fact it is trying to follow the surge and slow of the boat through the stroke) and, as mentioned, it doesn’t have any collision avoidance – but if you take this into account, have a quiet stretch of water which is clear of trees and are able to find one for a good price it is well worth a look